Thursday, January 22, 2015

Baltimore
City's Student Environmental Leadership Action Team (SELAT) meeting was
hosted by Commodore John Rodgers, just a few blocks from the BUGS
campus. Our students prepared themselves for the meeting by talking
about what healthy changes they would like to see at their school. The
conversation focused a lot on trash, but we also touched on worms, bees,
gardens, trees and more.

Afterwards,
BUGS students designed and created a coloring book about recycling which
they will give away at the BUGS Expo on Feb. 25th.

In other news... If your school green team is still looking for plants for the spring:

BUGS will start your seeds from scratch – submit request by Mar 1

Students will be growing seed starts for schools. If you provide the
seeds, there is no cost; if BUGS supplies the seeds, schools can ask for
specific plants and then pay a small fee ($5 per 20 plants). Seedlings
will be ready for pick-up at the BUGS Farmers Market on Apr 25 (802 S. Caroline St. in Harbor East, 10am-2pm). Alternate pick up times can also be scheduled.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Many of our students were taking great advantage of a meeting being held at their school for the Student Environmental Leadership Action Team with Mr. Jason. This meant that we were a few BUGS short of a regular day. With this, Mr. Tyone and I decided to combine our students to do some team-building and get to know our students on a more personal level. We tied in elements of both dance and STEM to make this a fun, educational, and productive time together.

Here I am teaching the girls how to do a thigh stand. We talked about balance and weight to make our stunt safe. Pictured left to right: Ty'nasia, Lariyah, Ms. Valerie, Sharron, Tracey, Taylor, and Arly.

Success! We completed the thigh stand stunt and the girls were very proud! We bonded over learning a new skill and learning about Ms. Valerie's cheerleading past.

To engage the girls and boys to work together more willingly and cooperatively, we challenged the students to make a human pyramid. We talked about elements of safety, how many people they had in total versus how many people would be on each level of the pyramid, weight distribution, and balance.

In the beginning, the girls and the boys did not want to work together
or have anything to do with each other. Here, they are joined for a
happy group photo for a job well done!

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

With the tune of Mariah Carey "All I Want For Christmas Is You" playing in the background the BUGS students sat in anticipation to receive their gifts.

The BUGS Students earn "BUG Bucks" daily as part of our incentive program. A few times a year they get to cash in those bucks for items from the BUG Buck Catalogue.

But what really got us into the christmas spirit are the gift donations we received from the Allegis Staffing Service Group. Each student received a stocking stuffed with goodies and a personal card, handmade, by the staff.

What is BUGS?

The Baltimore Urban Gardening with Students (BUGS) Program of Living Classrooms Foundation works with children from under-served Baltimore City communities throughout the year with an after-school program as well as a summer program. The program's primary goal is to empower and inspire our children to develop academically, creatively, and socially.

The BUGS program serves 60 students from the Butchers Hill/Patterson Park/Fells Point community. Many of our students reside in public housing and low-income neighborhoods. These students have little access to green space and few extra-curricular activities available to them. The program engages youth in learning while providing them with a safe and healthy alternative to the streets.

BUGS is a national model program that uses activities such as cooking, gardening, creative arts and movement, and entrepreneurial projects to help increase academic performance in reading and math and improve student behavior. The program provides a dynamic learning environment at the Living Classrooms East Harbor campus, with access to vegetable and flower gardens planted by the students, and the only wetlands on Baltimore's Inner Harbor. Our 1:10 instructor/student ratio provides youth with the close attention they need to succeed socially and academically.

Contributors

BUGS Staff

Michelle Koehler, Consultant.

Michelle came to Living Classrooms in 1996 and worked on our farm, shipboard, and outreach programs.She was also the After School Program Coordinator, Renaissance Summer Program Director, and Program Manager of the Land-based Department.Michelle graduated from Towson University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History.

Outside of work, Michelle enjoys spending time with her husband and two children.She also has a passion for traveling.She has been all over Europe, Central America, South America, and Mexico and has plans to continue her travels.

Algernon Campbell, Program Director.Mr. Algernon is originally from Savannah, GA. He is a graduate of Morehouse College with a B.A in Theatre and Drama as well as a graduate of the Certificate of Dance Program from the Ailey School. He has danced with the Dallas Black Dance Theatre for 4 seasons and for other renowned choreographers. He has danced nationally and internationally in such countries as Japan, Austria, and Zimbabwe. He has lived in many cities and now resides in Baltimore County. He is a professional dancer, teacher, and choreographer at the Morton Street Dance Center and Greater York Center for Dance Education.

Tyone Pompey, Creative Movement and Dance.

I Just Want To Dance! As a young boy growing up on Baltimore’s Westside I realized early on my passion for the Arts, particularly dance. Growing up as a resident in the inner city there were not many positive outlets for a young man like myself, but I managed to find one at Cahill Performing Arts Recreation Center. This center helped to lay the foundation and growth of this craft for me, in such a magnificent way that I want to be able to do the same for other youth and have been doing so since the age of 17. I’ve been a member of various dance troupes and performed in numerous competitions both local and out of state. Even though I am a recent graduate of Towson University, majoring in Electronic Media and Film, I am still holding true to my love of the arts teaching all who would like to learn the gift of dance.

Martin Zang, Cooking and Nutrition.Martin Zang is originally from Manchester, Michigan, a small town that barely could be seen on a map. He has recently graduated from Eastern Michigan University where he studied History and Political Science. Martin has always had a passion for cooking and healthy eating instilled in him by his Parents. He has worked in numerous restaurants in as many positions; this gave him the opportunity to learn more about food then just how to eat it. In his free time Martin likes to teach himself new recipes, have cookouts with friends, grow his own food, and do a little wood working.

Valerie Koury, STEM.I grew up in Osceola, Arkansas and moved to Maryland 11 years ago. I went to UMBC and majored in Psychology. I used to be a cheerleader for my high school and university. I enjoy reading, watching TV, baking, and being crafty. I am a big Orioles and Ravens fan (lets go Os!). Working with children and being a teacher has been my dream since I was 4 years old, so I am excited to be here! I teach STEM and I hope to do a lot of fun experiments this year.

Jason Reed, Gardening and the Environment.

Jason Reed has worked as a garden educator in Baltimore City for the past 5 years. Before that, he lived in Baltimore City as a music student at Peabody conservatory, and toured the country as a performing musician. He is also Director of the Filbert Street Garden, a one-acre outdoor community education space in South Baltimore.

Jason has given workshops and facilitated discussions for the Master Gardeners, Parks and People Foundation, Child First Authority, Towson University, UMBC and more. He is a founding member of the Mid-Atlantic Farm-Based Educators Network. In his own garden, Jason loves growing native herbal plants and perennial fruit bushes, and just hanging out with his chickens.

Kadija Ndiaye, Creative Art.

Kadija graduated from Morgan State University with a degree in Family and Consumer Sciences, her favorite classes were Art, Sewing and Urban Housing and Development.

Kadija has always been passionate about arts and crafts; during her junior year of college she shared her passions as an aftercare teacher at the Green School of Baltimore. During summer vacation you can find Kadija at Baltimore city libraries teaching arts and craft classes. During her free time she enjoys thrifting and DIY projects.